Summer of the Seventh
by dancingqueensillystring
Summary: Their love was a strange thing. It was a sudden thing. It was an odd thing. It was worn and torn but carefully patched back up again and again. But it was theirs. And it just might have been beautiful.
1. Station Spectacle

_Hey guys! You're probably wondering why I'm starting something new when The World on her Shoulders hasn't been updated in forever, that is if you're reading this because you're a fan of other things I've written? The answer is that I'm having trouble finding inspiration for T.W.O.H.S. so it might be a little, but rest assured that it will be updated eventually._

**_IMPORTANT NOTE READ OR ELSE:_**

**_Anyway, this story is my baby so, I'm really happy to post it! To help clarify questions that will probably come up, I'll over a few key points right now._**

**_-This story will be told in flashbacks from the summer before their seventh year, which in my story is when Lily and James got together. _**

**_-Every other chapter will be a flashback and in case you lose track, flashbacks will be in italics and present day will be in regular._**

**_-The present day part will mostly deal with working towards their death and update you on the progress of the war. _**

**_ Now without further ado:_**

**_ Summer of the Seventh_**

**_ Chapter 1_**

**_ The Station Spectacle  
_**

The usual hustle and bustle was quite a bit larger at the London train station than usual on September 1st. People hurried around in strange clothes, holding outlandish pets. They wore brightly colored old-fashioned cloaks and many had strange sticks poking out of their pockets. Among the frenzied strangers was a group of four boys and a girl, all acting strangely.

The first boy people saw was tall and good-looking with muscular shoulders and long shaggy black hair. He had laugh lines around his mouth and appeared to be around seventeen. He was laughing at something the second boy was saying.

Boy number two was shorter than boy one by a few inches and was very skinny. He had short brown hair and a handsome, but intelligent look about him. He was saying something funny to the group, but was keeping an entirely straight face. As the others burst into laughter he elbowed boy umber three in his slightly pudgy stomach.

The third boy was quite a bit shorter than all of the others, even the girl, and had to take many short steps to keep up with their longer strides. He had shortish blond hair and, while not very attractive, was not ugly. He was simply average. He let out a squeaky snort of laughter at something the fourth boy said.

The last boy was the tallest and was thinner than all but boy number two. He had dark brown almost black hair that looked strangely windswept. He also wore round glasses that revealed deep hazel eyes that seemed to suck you in. He had his arm wrapped around the girls shoulder, and she leaned into his embrace.

The only girl of the group was short and thin, and with her pale skin and beautiful green eyes, she appeared delicate and pixie-like. Her most amazing characteristic, however, was perhaps her long wavy hair. It was a deep dark shade of red, almost crimson, and it blew in the wind as she walked. The fourth boy wound his fingers through it absentmindedly as they walked.

As they walked to a brick wall between platforms nine and ten and stepped through it, none of the people who had seen them as they had walked noticed.

The four boys, who were widely referred to as the Marauders, waved cockily, and the girl elbowed the nearest boy in the ribs, to the people on the train who peered out of the window and gaped at the sight before them. These four boys were legend among the students at Hogwarts, the school they attended, for their many pranks and otherwise trouble-making antics. The girl, Lily Evans was known for being a widely popular girl who absolutely despised James Potter, the fourth boy, and Sirius Black, the first boy. The second boy, Remus Lupin, was the only one of the Marauders that Lily was known to even tolerate. So, it came as a shock when James Potter walked into the station with his arm wrapped around his long-time crush and many people believed love, and with her lightly resting her head on his shoulder and laughing good-naturedly at some story Remus and Sirius were telling her.

Said gaping students almost went into cardiac arrest when Lily reached up on her tiptoes and kissed James on the cheek before casually walking away to a girl who was waving at her from on the train.

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**_Hope you liked it and that if you didn't you're going to leave me a review telling me what you didn't like. I love constructive _****_criticism._**

**__****_Love,_**

**__****_dancingqueensillystring_**


	2. Only Almost

Okay, I was so excited about all of the positive feedback that I had to update again, so I edited this and then decided to post it. I'm sorry it's short, but these are memories, and so some of them are going to be long and some are going to be short. The present day chapters will be more consistent. By the way, I'm going out of town this weekend and won't be able to update.

* * *

**Summer of the Seventh**

**Chapter 2**

**Only Almost**

* * *

"_Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!" _

_There was only one person in the entire world who could make Lily Evans so mad she couldn't see straight._

_James Potter_

_He stood before her in all his arrogant gitish glory, his untidy hair even messier than usual and his round glasses crookedly perched on his nose. He looked a little uncertain at her reaction to him and Lily almost felt ashamed for having reacted so, well, loudly…_

_But only almost._

'_After all' she thought with a certain amount of hate for destiny and fate and all that garbage for putting her in this situation. 'I am perfectly within my rights to scream (more like shriek, a voice in the very depths of her mind told her quietly) when James Potter hops of a broom in __**my**__ front yard, in front of __**my**__ house, in __**my**__ neighborhood, during __**my**__ summer vacation.'_

'_Stop it' that little voice says. 'He's being perfectly polite right now. He hasn't said a single unkind word since he arrived.' After a short pause, the voice continued. 'In fact, he hasn't said anything at all.'_

_She wondered idly if James Potter was a mind reader, as he took that very moment to start talking._

"_Hey, Evans." His cocky tone told her he hadn't changed a bit. "Been missing me, I can see." She internally scolded herself for tempting fate by commenting on his silence. Then she reflected quickly back on happier times when he was quiet before steeling herself not to hex him senseless until he gave her good reason to._

"_So…" she swore to herself right then that if the next words out of his mouth were 'Go out with me, Evans?' she was going to turn around and march right back into her house and lock all the doors and windows and never come back out. "How has your summer been?"_

_Her eyes must have shown her disbelief that Potter could be civil because he let out a snort of laughter that was almost attractive…_

_But only almost. _

_Slightly embarrassed, she scuffed her shoes back and forth on the grass as she answered him. "It was alright, I guess. And yours?"_

_She added the last part on a whim, and she found herself shocked at the idea that she could even be sort of civil to Potter. He began to tell her about the first few weeks of his summer holiday, and she was surprised to hear herself laughing along with him as he told stories of his many pranks with Sirius and their other adventures throughout the summer._

"_So, yeah, we moved in right next door to you." That sentence woke her with a jolt, as she realized she had been zoning out for several minutes._

_Potter and her, neighbors?_

_Before today the idea was horrifying and insane and terrible and it would have made her shriek with anger and maybe with terror as well. But today she didn't have any of those reactions. Today she was almost happy about it._

_But only almost._

_She gave him a little smile and stuck out her hand._

"_Since we're going to be neighbors, I propose a truce." He stuck his hand out as well and with a nod they were shaking hands._

'_The feeling of his larger hand enveloping her smaller one was nice' she thought absentmindedly as she smiled at him. He smiled back._

_It might have been the beginning._

* * *

**Sooooo? What did you think? Tell me in a review and I'm more likely to update sooner!**

**Love you guys,**

**dancingqueensillstring**


	3. Chapter 3

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Sorry it took so long, but I had some beta issues and then real life got in the way, so this is unbetaed so that I can get it to you faster. As it is unbetaed, I am hoping I get a lot of constructive criticism so I can work on improving this chapter. I'll try to be more prompt on the next chapter, but in between dance and school I'm pretty swamped. Plus, I have another story that I'm also about to start, so don't hold your breath in between chapters. I hope it was worth the wait.

Chapter 3

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-

_Muggle Killing's Increase;_

_The Work of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named?_

_Last week, a small muggle neighborhood in Central London was attacked and several muggles were killed. One eyewitness (whose memory was later modified) claims that several "very large bats" swooped down on the street and transformed into humans, before taking out "sticks" and shooting bright lights at them. Aurors have deduced that the Killing Curse was cast several times, and that this is indeed the work of the so-called He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. Several muggles are still missing and…_

"Urgh!" Lily cried, throwing down the paper with a shriek. "This whole article is utter rubbish! Very large bats, my arse, and what's with all this 'You-Know-Who' rubbish? It's just a name, a bloody name!"

She was currently nestled rather comfortably in James' arms, in the Gryffindor common room, and she almost felt a little bad for her display of temper when it made James lean back a little, as if distance could save him from her temper. At her disapproving frown he moved back into his former place and wrapped both of his arms around her and smiled as she cuddled into him.

Sirius and Remus, who were sitting in front of them on the floor and playing a particularly ferocious game of wizard chess, seemed to agree with Lily.

"I just want to know what they're doing to stop these attacks. Knight to E 4. I mean, instead of interviewing hysterical muggles they should be out doing something!"

Remus let out a groan as Sirius said this, either in grief at his defeat, or in agreement with Sirius's words.

James, upon seeing that his mates' words were doing nothing to relieve Lily, heaved himself up and gently tugged her hand toward the portrait hole. She followed behind him a little reluctantly, but did not let go of his hand. He continued to walk steadily forward and around many twists and turns and Lily stopped trying to figure out where they were going. The paintings they passed of old wizards and witches and royalty and children playing along the way waved at the couple as they passed and some even murmured a quick hello to James.

The night air was peaceful and pleasant and Lily did not bother herself with worrying about anything. The constant plaguing thoughts of Newts and homework and Voldemort and getting in trouble for being out after hours ceased to exist as she focused on the feeling of safety when James held her hand or touched her, the very feeling that had caused her to fall in love with him.

After many minutes of walking in comfortable silence, James finally stopped. "We're here."

Lily looked around at where exactly here was and was surprised and disappointed. The corridor was mostly bare except for a few paintings; the one they were currently standing in front of was nicely rendered one of a bowl of fruit. She watched in confusion and then excitement as James reached his hand up and tickled the pear which caused it to giggle softly. The brick wall in front of them began to shift and as the stones rearranged themselves, shifting to reveal a great wooden door which James opened.

Inside the room was an old fashioned kitchen. It was filled with all of the usual kitchen appliances; an oven, a refrigerator, and tables. It mirrored the set up of the great hall above it, with four long tables in the middle and house elves sitting at them and milling around the room cooking food that she could only assume was for that night's dinner.

Lily watched in wonder as James stepped forward and walked to a stove at the end of the room with a refrigerator next to it.

"James…." She took a pause to look around the room in something akin to awe, before shaking her head roughly and jogging to where he was standing. "These are the Hogwarts kitchens, aren't they?"

He finally turned around to face her and gave a cocky grin when he saw her standing in the center of the room, revolving as if she could take every detail of the room just by looking.

"I take it you've never been here before."

"Oh James, it's wonderful. How in the world did you find it?"

He flashed his trademark smirk that she had once found annoying and arrogant, but now could only find charming. "Marauder's secret, babe." She laughed at the pet name.

She continued to laugh as he puttered around with the cooking appliances, waving off the concerned house elves cries of "Master James, let us assist you." And "Master James, can we get you anything?"

"Take a seat, Lily-Flower, a master chef is at work here and you need not stress yourself by standing."

She did just as he asked, seating herself at the table that would have been Gryffindors.

It was strange, she thought. Before she started dating James, the act of sneaking off to the Hogwarts kitchens would have caused her great physical and emotional pain; her inner prefect would have been entirely appalled and generally aghast.

Now though, here she sat, perfectly at peace with the entire idea, and the only explanation was _James._

He had changed her in the few months they had been together; there was no doubt about that. Where before she had been uptight and strict, she was now laid back and fun loving and even if she had once vowed to remain unchanged by the wind and the sea and most certainly not by any guy, she found herself quite okay with it. In fact she was happy with it, happier than she had ever been before. Like in the common room before when she had become worked up because there was a war going on and people were being killed every day, people like her, and there was nothing she could do about it. James knew what she was feeling and why she was feeling it and how to make it better. He knew her.

When she was with James stress melted away, worries drifted off into the far distance, and there was nothing but contentment and safety and _love._

Because she, Lily Evans, was completely and utterly in love with James Potter.

The realization of love was like a sharp blow to the back of the head, but not an entirely unpleasant one. The house elves around her were looking at her with concern, and she noticed that she must have visibly flinched forward, so she gave them what she thought was a small reassuring smile but actually appeared to be a manic nervous contortion of the face.

"You okay Lily?" James asked.

"YEAH, FINE. I'M JUST PEACHY. I'M WONDERFUL-BETTER THAN EVER. TRES BIEN. I'M SIMPLY SPLENDIFEROUS AND GOOD AND SUPERB AND THANK YOU FOR ASKING JAMES. YOU KNOW THAT I REALLY ENJOY WHEN PEOPLE ARE SO CONCERNED, IT'S VERY GENTLEMANLY. I CAN'T BELIEVE THAT I EVER THOUGHT THAT YOU WERE A JERK. EVEN IF YOU WERE A JERK, I SHOULD HAVE JUST GIVEN IN BECAUSE YOU HAVE VERY NICE ABS AND I AM VERY FOND OF VERY NICE ABS. ABS ARE JUST A NICE MUSCLE IN GENERAL, DON'T YOU THINK? I THINK SO, BUT YOU PROBABLY ALREADY KNOW THAT BECAUSE I SAID IT JUST A FEW MINUTES AGO. I'M NOW STARTING TO REALIZE THAT I MIGHT BE BLABBERING, AND I THINK I AM BECAUSE I'M TALKING AT A VERY FAST SPEED AND ABOUT ANYTHING THAT COMES TO MIND. I HOPE YOU DON'T FIND IT UNATTRACTIVE BECAUSE I DO IT QUITE A BIT, ESPECIALLY WHEN I'M NERVOUS, WHICH OF COURSE, I'M NOT RIGHT NOW, BECAUSE YOU ARE MY BOYFRIEND AND YOU MAKE ME FEEL SAFE AND HAPPY AND SPECIAL AND NEVER EVER NERVOUS. SEE, I HAVE NO REASON TO BE NERVOUS, SO WE SHOULD ASSUME THAT I'M BLABBERING BECAUSE I RATHER ENJOY IT AND NOT BECAUSE I HAVE JUST COME TO THE RATHER STARTLING CONCLUSION THAT I LOVE YOU!" Lily gasped and slapped a hand over her mouth. She hadn't meant to say _that._

James, who had been sitting there looking lost and rather stunned at the speed at the speed at which his girlfriend could speak, jumped out of the seat next to her that he had taken during the monologue, dropped the hot chocolate he had been carrying on the floor, and proceeded to grab her and begin to twirl her around the kitchens with the house elves (who had started watching in interest at the beginnings of Lily's blabbering) staring on in something that could have been terror, could have been awe, and could have been plain old oh-aren't-they-adorableness.

Because they were quite adorable, weren't they.

James had now ceased his spinning and had settled for embracing her tightly and resting his forehead against Lily's own. Their bodies were pressed together as though any space between them would separate them by miles. His face spread into a wide grin as he whispered into her ear.

"I love you too."


	4. Author's Note

Author's Note

Hey guys,

Really sorry, but this is just an author's note, not a new chapter. However, you should know that I am beginning to work on this fic again, starting with some pretty major editing. Do not be alarmed if chapters start disappearing, that simply means that I'm editing it and that it should be reposted soon (actually, fanfiction has an awful habit of being very mean to me whenever I try to upload new chapters, so maybe you should be a bit alarmed). So, good news is that you guys will be getting an update after like 2 years of something completely insane like that, bad news is that it might still take awhile for me to finish editing and then post new things (but not awhile like another two years or something, more like a couple of weeks). Also, I have winter break soon, which means a definite pick up in my writing. So, to recap, sorry that this is an author's note not a chapter, sorry that I haven't updated in forever, but please forgive me because I'm going to soon.

Thanks,

dqss


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